Brown records 100th win

Friday, May 09, 2014 - Updated: 9:04 AM

By MICHAEL KELLY

michael.kelly@recordernews.com

ALBANY -- Of course he did, right?

Needing a win in Thursday's high jump to secure victory No. 100 in his outdoor track and field career, Amsterdam High School junior Izaiah Brown left nothing to chance. Brown set a new personal record with a leap of 6 feet, 6 inches to win the event, besting his old mark by two inches -- and coming within an inch-and-a-half of the school record, which belongs to Brown's uncle, Freddie Brown.

"Honestly, if I had gotten 100 wins and broken the record, I would have cried," Izaiah Brown said after his team's Big 10 dual meet against Albany and Troy.

Instead, Brown had to settle for setting a new PR in the high jump; tying Brett Stanavich's school record in the 100-meter dash with a winning time of 10.7 seconds; taking first place in the 200-meter dash with a time of 21.6 seconds; and, winning the 400-meter dash with a time of 47.9 seconds.

So, just another day.

"What stands out about Izaiah is that we can put him in any race and he'll win because he has the mental ability to always push himself to be ahead," said Amsterdam sophomore Edgar Maldonado. "He has a gift."

That theory was tested Thursday, as Amsterdam head coach Kevin Wilary put Brown into unfamiliar territory when he inserted him into the 100-meter dash.

"That race surprised me the most," said Wilary. "He's so much stronger this year, and, in a sprint race -- especially the 100 -- you can't get away with not being strong. He went [10.7 seconds] and tied our school record -- and this is only the third time he's run that race."

Brown found out midway through Thursday's meet that he was approaching 100 wins for his career. He said it was surprising to find out he had that many career wins -- or that anyone was keeping count.

"Nobody really keeps track of how many wins you have in track, but, honestly, it's pretty cool," Brown said.

This season, Brown -- the reigning state champion in the 400-meter dash -- has won 30 events, including solo races, field events and relays. His only loss -- of sorts -- came in a 4x200-meter relay, a race in which his team flubbed a handoff and did not finish.

While securing win No. 100 was exciting, Brown's post-meet focus remained where it usually has been during his magical high school career: His uncle's record in the high jump.

"Now, I'm only an inch-and-a-half away from him, and he's going to hear it from me when I get home," Brown said.